5 Signs You Need More Sleep
We’re just going to say it – WE ARE TIRED!
In our world today, we’re busy. We are always on to the next thing. We are always rushing to make that meeting, that happy hour, you name it. We can barely stay present enough to finish one task before planning out how to attack our next! Being busy is upheld as a badge of honor, as if we are more important if we have more things to do. We deprive ourselves of resting and of sleeping, so we can be the best boss, the best employee, the best child or sibling, the best friend… etc.
But, we’re here today to tell you, bluntly, that you are GOING to burn yourself out. One more time for the people in the back… you are GOING to BURN YOURSELF OUT.
Going, going, going can only lead to one place… and that is total exhaustion! Maybe you’re already feeling this, but you’re also feeling the pressure to keep going? Maybe you adhere to that age old saying, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” We can relate. But it’s important to know that when we allow ourselves time and space to REST, we can come back and attack our to-do list with more energy. In the end, that’s what matters — taking care of ourselves, so we can show up as our best selves.
For overall health and sustainable energy, adults ages 18-60 should be getting 7 or more hours of sleep PER NIGHT. Are you getting that? Here are FIVE SIGNS that you definitely need to slow down, and get some SLEEP!
1. YOU’RE ALWAYS HUNGRY
When your brain isn’t getting energy from resting and sleeping, it will often try to get it from food! Running low on sleep can increase the production of ghrelin, also known as the hunger hormone, in your gut. When this happens, your body wants fatty and sugary foods to satisfy it, and you aren’t feeling the signals to stop eating!
2. YOUR MEMORY IS LACKING
When you’re tired, it’s hard enough to pay attention in the present, let alone remember what happened last week. Studies show that sleep helps clear toxic molecules from the brain, so, when we aren’t getting enough sleep, these build up and affect our daily functions.
3. YOUR MOTOR SKILLS ARE OFF
Not resting and sleeping enough leads to a lapse in brain function. It lowers your reaction time, your concentration and even difficulty with movement. We move so much each day, and that requires a lot of processing! This can be affected when you are sleep deprived.
4. YOU ARE…EMOTIONAL
Now, being emotional is 100 percent OKAY. In fact, we encourage it. Feeling your emotions is a healthy and necessary way to move through life. However, when you’re tired, your emotions can be, for lack of a better phrase, all over the place! You may feel over-reactive, simply because your body and your brain haven’t had a chance to rest.
5. YOU GET SICK OFTEN
An improper amount of sleep can affect your entire body, namely your immune system. Your body’s functions are working in overdrive, and it lowers your body’s defenses to the world around you — ie, that doorknob that hasn’t been cleaned, the subway, your office, school, anything. Studies find that adults who got less than seven hours of sleep were nearly THREE TIMES as likely to develop a cold, versus those who got eight hours of rest or more each night.
